Connections

Even a fox can get exhausted

straining for all the sounds.

The world will shrink if it doesn’t change

Opulence doesn’t guarantee happiness

She learns from an Indian friend

A butterfly can tilt Indra’s net.

Delight when scenery 

unfolds before you

wherever you are.

You may be alone 

but you will not be lonely.

Her silence is a conviction 

not to judge others 

by any standards.

She will pass by a garden

and admire a flower

for what it is.

A neighbor will ask her, 

Did you see Mary today,

going to church dressed 

improperly?

It is a warm weather finally,

she will answer.

She may not be precise,

that’s what she sees.

Why

She goes to school.

He goes to church.

Others look for their birthdays in the zodiac.

There are other ways of learning.

People are confused.

Life consists of many parts

Some parts are broken.

Then life changes enormously 

Like shifting shadows in the afternoon

Turned into giant mass of dark clouds enclosing the world,

Silent, hidden, and stilled.

People do not understand why

After they learn to spell catastrophe

They are not happy but distraught.

Musing 3

The hiker adjusts his backpack

Resumes his climb

Sounds of a waterfall

The hiker sits under a tree

Closes his eyes and naps

A deer passes by

mother sings

baby sleeps

angels play

If a flower is a genius

how will it grow?

differently

The kayakers paddle in the river

Boats: red, green, yellow

Sun shapes different angles

note: I walked to the river today. The egret returned. As I tried to move near the egret sensed my coming and flew away.

Pilgrimage

A pilgrimage of the heart,

an errand of the spirit

I will take a morning walk 

and knock on my friend’s door,

lean on a tree, feel the root’s vibrations.

I  will fold my hands and listen to stories:

People walking, their pockets heavy with stones,

birds singing sad songs and hiding  their wings from the sun

riverbeds with broken porcelains,

multi-syllabic prayers uttered in silence at Angelus.

A child and a lady smile and wave 

when I pass by on my way home 

on the sidewalk with wild flowers 

blooming next to the iron fence.

I have been walking to the river again since 4 days ago. I did not walk today.

A Question

The adventurous portrait of my longing

The green leaves turn brown, the chilling wind

The shadows spread riddles from the sun

Distinguishing the passage of time

Songs all different can blend in harmony

Conquering doubts and afflictions

To seek, to find, to end all wanderings

But what is love that love challenges life

Is not praise enough without surrender?

O mystery.

Rare time when snow arrives in Napa Valley

Beginning

February 4, 2023

Good morning.

First day of my Sabbath Project

I’m a beginner. A believer? Not yet. A faithful? Oh, no. Far from it.

What is the sudden reversal?

The mystical women of the Middle Ages. I’ll start with St. Clare of Assisi and Mechthild of Magdeburg.

What’s Sabbath Project? Getting up at 8am. Meditation for half hour.